La Vérité
by InYourNightmares
Summary: "Vera," she whispered quietly. "It means truth." And the painful irony of her life hit her all at once. Vera Selwyn learns that the most painful lies we tell, are the ones we tell ourselves. Marcus Flint/OFC, mentions of Oliver Wood/OFC.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter 1**

"Selwyn! Selwyn! What the bloody hell's wrong with the entrance to the common room?" demanded an irate-looking Miles Bletchley. He was standing in front of the damp stone wall along with a group of other Slytherin boys. All were tired and annoyed; they had been trying to get into the common room for over twenty minutes. Miles shifted his broom from one arm to the other. "We've been screaming _Black Lake_ at it for ages, now! It won't bloody open!"

Vera Selwyn looked at the group of boys calmly. She was carrying a pile of books under one arm and her dark eyes narrowed at them. "That's because it's not _Black Lake_ anymore. The password changed yesterday. The same way it has been changing every month on the 7th for the past five years."

Miles narrowed his eyes at her. "Are you calling me thick?"

"Wouldn't dream of it," Vera quipped in return. The egoistic and brutish Slytherin boys of her year were Vera's last choice to pick a fight with. It was pointless to argue with internalized vanity. Besides, such an argument would be a waste of her efforts; these oafs were beneath her. Vera ignored them and calmly turned to face the stone wall. " _Ancestry,"_ she said calmly. The entrance to the common room opened, and Vera lugged her books inside, heading straight up to the girl's dormitory. She could hear the boys still grumbling behind her; they were probably muttering profanities.

Vera rolled her eyes.

She had long come to terms with the one thing universal truth that every Slytherin student surely knew, but which was never spoken aloud.

 _Deep down, we all hate each other._

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Vera stared up at Professor Snape dully. She had always been good at Potions; but taking the class with the Gryffindors was the worst. There was always a commotion. They never seemed to be able to get through a class without some sort of interruption or problem. Not to mention she was stuck with Percy Weasley as a Potions partner, which was an absolute nightmare.

Vera subtly shifted her chair a few inches further away from the Gryffindor boy beside her. She'd heard plenty about the Weasleys; blood traitors who lived in some sort of a hole. While Percy Weasley didn't appear to be quite as dirty as his family's reputation, he was still unbearable. But a group of rowdy Gryffindors had caused a few cauldrons to explode in the last class and as a result, Snape had declared that only people from different houses could pair up for Potions. And Vera had landed her year's Weasley.

"You should really grind those porcupine quills at an angle, it'll be much quicker-"

Vera shot Percy a sharp glare. "I know how to powder porcupine quills."

Percy Weasley blinked at her through his large glasses. Vera Selwyn certainly wasn't the worst Slytherin he could have received as a Potions partner. She wasn't as malicious as most of them, but she hated being told she was wrong. Percy took a deep breath. "I never said you didn't know. I was merely suggesting a way to move the process along."

"If you concentrate on your share of the moonstone, _Weasley,_ I assure you the process will move along just fine," Vera replied calmly, without turning to look at him. Her fingers were neatly grinding the porcupine quills against the table. Percy Weasley frowned at her.

"Really, Selwyn, I would prefer if we maintained a positive and co-operative working relationship, considering that the OWLs are approaching and this potion is highly essential to the syllabus for-"

"Do you ever stop talking?" Vera demanded, turning to look at the red-head beside her in exasperation. She was tired of hearing his constant jabber and nagging beside her. It was barely a week since the new academic year had begun and she was already sick of him. Vera was resisting the urge to wring his freckled neck.

Percy Weasley looked offended. "There's no need to be rude! We have to work together for the rest of the year, the least we can do is co-operate! It would only be to mutual benefit!"

Vera ignored him and raised her hand. Professor Snape was peering into a cauldron a few desks away, but he came sweeping over when he spotted Vera's raised hand. He towered over the pair of them, looking down at them with a somewhat bored expression. "Yes, Miss Selwyn? You appear to be behind on your potion. Is there some sort of a problem?"

Vera lowered her hand. "Professor, I would like to request a different Potions partner."

Percy gaped at her. His spectacles slid down his nose slightly. Neither Vera nor Professor Snape blinked; both seemed perfectly calm and bored. Snape raised an eyebrow. "You find your current partner inadequate?" he drawled.

"I find Mr. Weasley insufferable," corrected Vera.

Percy shoved his glasses up his nose angrily and sat up. He certainly wasn't going to let this girl insult him when he'd done nothing wrong! "Professor, I must object! I was merely advising Miss. Selwyn of a more effective way to powder the porcupine quills when she took offense, I see no reason why she should be allowed to-"

Professor Snape raised an eyebrow. "I see exactly what you mean, Miss Selwyn," he replied, cutting Percy off. Snape whirled around with a slight swish of his robe and called out loudly to a table a few rows away in the dungeon. "Mr. Bletchley! Were you also not expressing some objections regarding your Potions partner?" he called out. Miles Bletchley blinked and nodded.

"Miss Selwyn, you may trade partners with Mr. Bletchley. Mr. Weasley, Mr. Wood, please change your seats accordingly," Professor Snape replied, before heading back to the front of the class. His robes swished again as he whirled around to stand behind his desk. "No further partner exchanges shall be entertained."

Vera smiled to herself in silent triumph as Percy began to pack up his belongings. Thank Merlin, Snape had been in a good mood and allowed it. The red-headed Weasley shot Vera a haughty glare before moving to his new seat. A few seconds later, Oliver Wood plopped down beside her, slamming his books on the table. He glanced at Vera with a frown.

"Why'd you ask to change your partner?" Wood asked curiously.

"He talked too much," Vera replied pointedly. Her eyes grazed over the Gryffindor Quidditch captain. No wonder Miles hadn't been able to work with Wood; the Quidditch rivalry was far too tense at the start of the year. Quidditch teams had just been formed and there were rumours that Gryffindor had a new Seeker; although none of that was known for sure. Vera glanced at Wood curiously. He didn't appear to be quite as haughty as Weasley, but no Gryffindor was ever a piece of cake.

"I see," Wood replied slowly. He wondered how the Slytherin girl beside him managed to keep her expression so perfectly blank. Vera's features were sharp and emotionless. Wood couldn't even tell if she was relieved to have him instead of Percy, or if she thought he was worse. "All right, then, no talking, I presume?"

"That's correct."

"All right," Wood replied. He looked at Vera once again before peering into the cauldron. It was bubbling slightly. "So, erm, what stage is the potion at? I'm not sure exactly what you're doing right now."

Vera swiftly set aside the small stone she had been using to powder the porcupine quills and added them to the potion in one fluid motion. Her dark eyes glanced at Wood critically. "I'll handle the potion. You only need to let me work in silence."

"You don't want me to do anything?" Wood asked in surprise.

"Do you _need_ to repeat everything I say back to me in the form of a question, or do you simply do it to annoy me?" she snapped harshly. "No, you don't need to do any work. No, I don't want you to talk to me during class. If you have any more clarifications, spit them out right now."

Wood frowned. Her attitude was rubbing against his nerves; exactly what did this Slytherin girl think of herself? No wonder she and Percy Weasley hadn't been able to get along. Wood took a deep breath. But putting aside his pride for a moment… it wasn't often that one got a Slytherin partner who was willing to do all the work. If he could look past her snappiness and cold expressions, maybe she could be useful. Wood took a deep breath and cleared his throat. "You don't mind if I do some other work, then?" he clarified.

Vera gripped her wand tightly. "No," she replied through gritted teeth. "I don't care what you do. But if you speak again, then by Merlin's beard, I _will_ smash your face in with a Bludger."

Wood blinked. He decided it was better to keep silent. As she had requested, he proceeded to ignore the girl who was now stirring the cauldron with her wand. Instead, he fished into his bag and pulled out a few sheets of parchment. He covered them partially with his Potions textbook and then began to scratch at them with his quill. There was complete silence between both of them.

Vera was relieved; even though Wood had asked more questions than necessary, he understood the meaning of complete silence. Once he had started scribbling on his piece of parchment, not a single peep came out of him. Only once when Snape passed near their desk did Wood quickly hide the parchment with his textbook. Then he resumed his work once the Professor had moved away. Vera sighed as she continued to brew the potion.

"That one's flawed."

Wood was startled when he heard Vera speak. Over twenty minutes had passed in complete silence, and he'd been so busy with his Quidditch strategies that he had almost forgotten he was in class. He glanced down at his parchment; it was filled with stick figures in brooms that were flying around in various formations. Wood looked up as Vera and blinked. "What?" he asked.

Vera frowned as she turned off the flame beneath the cauldron. She had just finished brewing the potion; and there was still two minutes left of class so she had chanced a look at what Wood was doing. She lazily jabbed her wand at a point on his parchment. "This formation is flawed. You've left a gap here. The Beater can slide in if he wants and your Chaser wouldn't have the time to react."

Wood blinked at her and then instantly shoved the parchment under his Potions textbook. His expression was hard. _How could I be so stupid; she's a Slytherin!_ "You know about Quidditch strategies?" he asked her in disbelief.

Vera cracked a hint of a smile as she poured the potion into a small flask. "If you're going to plan your Quidditch practices in public, at least don't do them in front of the rival house. Or perhaps you thought that because I'm a girl, I wouldn't understand what you were doing anyway?"

Wood clenched his quill in his fist. "No. Some of the best players on my team are girls. But none of the _Slytherin_ girls ever seem to play, so…" he trailed off, before he suddenly realized and cursed. "Merlins' beard. You're Flint's girlfriend, aren't you? Bloody hell, of course you understood-"

"My knowledge of quidditch has nothing to do with my boyfriend," Vera replied swiftly.

Wood blinked at her. He was still worried. Had she been peeking at his plans throughout class? How many of his strategies had she understood enough to tell Flint about? Oliver Wood swore at himself for being so careless, but Vera only seemed to find his predicament amusing.

"I'm not going to tell him, you know," she said after a long, tense silence. The bell rang and the class instantly moved into motion. There was the loud scraping of chairs and the slamming of books. Vera stood up herself, using her wand to clear up all the potions ingredients in one swift move. Then she looked down at Wood. "Marcus doesn't care much for strategy."

Wood scoffed. "Probably because he can't comprehend them."

He expected Vera to glare at him again or come up with some cool and snappy retort; but she merely cracked another of those slightly mysterious half-smiles of hers before hitching her bag up on her shoulder and walking out. She pushed past a few people and reached the exit to the dungeon, where a familiar face was waiting in the corridor.

"Hello, beautiful," Marcus Flint greeted her. He was giving her one of his crooked, large-toothed smiles. Vera walked up to him calmly, and allowed him to pull her closer while wrapping a muscular arm around her shoulders. With his other hand, Flint took her bag from her hands. "How was class?"

"Dreadful," she replied, just as Flint swooped down and placed a kiss on the corner of her mouth. He smelled of mud and broomstick polish; he always smelled like that somehow, even when he hadn't been on the pitch all day. Vera inhaled the familiar scent before looking up at him through her eyelashes. "What are you doing here, darling?" she asked sweetly, placing a hand on his shoulder to balance herself in his arms. She could feel the rippling muscles underneath.

"Had a free period; thought I'd walk back to lunch with you," Flint replied with a grin. He slung her bag over his shoulder and kept his other arm wrapped firmly around her; a few people were looking at them, but Vera was pretty sure that Flint wanted that. He tended towards subtle public displays of marking his territory. "Are you hungry?"

"Starving," Vera replied. She was about to turn and begin walking towards the Great Hall, but Flint didn't move. He was staring past her; his cheerful grin had morphed into a sneer. Vera whirled around and noticed Oliver Wood exiting the classroom among a throng of other students.

"Wood!" Flint called out loudly. The Gryffindor captain turned around. While he was by no means unfit, he looked rather small and insignificant beside Flint. "Been hearing rumors about your team lately," Flint continued.

Wood raised an eyebrow. He glanced briefly at Vera, who was pressed firmly into Flint's side, and then up at the taller boy. "Have you, Flint?"

"That's right. People are saying you've chosen the Potter boy as your new Seeker," Flint replied with a chuckle. "I saw him yesterday; he's even smaller than you, which I never thought was possible. Or perhaps that's why you picked him- so you wouldn't be the runt of the team anymore?" Flint mocked.

"Brute force is not the essence of Quidditch, Flint," Wood replied calmly.

Flint chuckled. "We'll see who's talking when ickle baby Potter goes home crying after the first match."

"Don't underestimate him. He's got _talent, s_ omething you Slytherins fail to comprehend." Wood cracked a small smile and then glanced again at Vera. She looked bored. "But that's not the only thing you fail to comprehend, is it, Flint?"

Flint clenched his fist. "You filthy half-blooded-"

"Darling, is this going to take much longer?" Vera drawled. She was glancing at her watch and looked mildly irritated. "As entertaining as this display of pretentious male ego and puffed-up bravado is, I'm hungry and it's lunchtime."

Flint blinked down at her, his expression softening slightly. "Sorry darling," he apologized quickly. He slid his arm around Vera's back and began to lead her away. He glanced back at Oliver Wood and narrowed his eyes at him. "You watch yourself, Wood!" he called after him.

Wood stared after the disappearing couple, a little bewildered. Vera hadn't only insulted him; she'd also insulted her own boyfriend, or had Flint not realized that? That big oaf probably didn't understand a word that she had said. Vera Selwyn was graceful, pretty, and deceptively clever.

Which then begged the question- _what exactly was she doing with that stupid troll?_

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 **A/N – Hello, everyone! Thanks for choosing to read this! It's been so long since I've written a HP fanfiction that I feel completely out of touch. But I simply love Slytherin and so this is just me attempting to write another fanfic revolving around Slytherin lifestyle and drama. While I have an outline in mind, I haven't decided entirely where this story is going, I'm just kind of hoping to bust some of my stress through it. Any suggestions are welcome. Hope you enjoy!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter 2**

Vera slung her legs over the armrest of the comfortable leather sofa. The dungeons were dark and it was late at night. The Slytherin common room was generally quiet; people rarely spoke over a low murmur. Conversations were mostly filled with unpleasant things; things you didn't want others to hear, things that couldn't be said too loudly. Lies, gossip, secrets. Every word was spoken with calculated caution and usually had some hidden agenda.

"Charms test tomorrow?" Flint asked. Vera's head was in his lap as she lay curled up on the sofa. Her charms book was propped up against a cushion, sideways so that she could read it at an angle. She looked bored; her eyes were drooping shut and she let out a small yawn.

Vera nodded slowly. Flint's hands were running through her hair and she closed her eyes, enjoying the feeling. She had seen him crush his opponents' fingers during Quidditch matches and almost smash Quaffles with his bare hands. But when Flint touched her, his touch was surprisingly gentle and soft. The pads of his fingers ran through the dark strands of Vera's hair with tenderness.

"It's such a pain. All we're doing is revising things we've already studied. Flitwick hardly teaches anything new in fifth year." Vera twirled her wand and flicked it lightly at her Charms textbook. " _Incendio,"_ she uttered lazily, setting the tip of a page on fire. Flint looked a little surprised, but stayed still as Vera watched the small flame during for a few seconds, before putting it out with her wand. The edge of the page curled up in blackness. She frowned at it, and then looked up at Flint. "How did you get through fifth year?"

Flint shrugged. He'd barely gotten any OWLs in his fifth year. Whatever he did get was because his parents had contacts with the examiners and he'd used his blood status to his advantage in the practicals. But Vera wouldn't be satisfied with that. She got excellent grades. "Dunno. Don't remember much of it, really. I was playing Quidditch most of the time," Flint replied. He looked down at the beautiful girl laying in his lap.

"Hmm." Vera bit her lip. "Was it true what you said earlier to Wood?"

"Eh?"

"Outside Potions class, about Harry Potter being the new Gryffindor Seeker." Vera lifted her head off his lap and straightened up so she was sitting beside him on the leather sofa. Her eyes were shining. "Are they really taking a first year? One that has no flying experience at all?"

Flint chuckled. "I know. Daft, isn't it?"

 _No, what's daft is you,_ Vera wanted to say. She took a deep breath and looked at Flint carefully. "But if Wood is taking such a big risk, don't you think we should see what this Potter boy can do? What if he's really a threat?"

Flint raised an eyebrow at her. "Darling, Potter is hardly a threat."

"But if Wood-"

" _Shhh,"_ he cut her off, placing his thumb over her lips. Once she fell silent, he removed his thumb and replaced them with his own lips. Vera felt a burst of anger. She wanted to shove Flint off but she stayed silent, and allowed him to kiss her. "Leave the Quidditch to me, darling, I'll handle it," he murmured against her lips. Hot breath mingled as he pulled Vera closer and wrapped his arms carefully around her waist.

Vera cooled herself down as Flint insistently pressed hot kisses to her lips. It was easy to get lost in his touch; Marcus Flint could be gentle and passionate at the same time. His hand traced up and down her back, sending shivers up her spine. "Mmm- darling, shouldn't we go somewhere more private?" Vera asked, pulling away and whispering in his ear.

Flint grinned and helped her up, the both of them hurrying away to find some abandoned broom closet in which to continue. Vera had to hold in gasps of pleasure as he kissed his way down her neck and his fingers slid under her jumper. He certainly knew what he was doing, and Vera enjoyed this little perk of dating Marcus Flint.

 _But deep down, we all hate each other._

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"Off snogging with your boyfriend all evening, were you?" Anna Travers teased. She was leaning back on her bed with a book in her lap, but she looked up as soon as Vera entered the dormitory. It was late; well past curfew and most of the other girls in the dormitory were asleep. Then again, Anna was always far too nosy for her own good. It was possible that she'd stayed up solely out of curiosity to see where Vera had gone.

"Perhaps," Vera replied simply, as she flopped onto her own bed. She sighed and ran her fingers through her hair. It was tangled and messy; Flint often left it that way after he'd run his hands through it for too long. She reached for a comb and then glanced at Anna again. "I know you think my boyfriend looks like a troll." _At least I've got one._

Despite being a descendant of the pureblooded Travers line, Anna's mother was only a halfblood and she was desperate to make up for her deficiency in blood status by throwing herself at all the rich pureblood boys she came across. It was really quite pathetic.

Anna smiled lightly. "Well. Your boyfriend's not the handsomest one around; but he does seem to have potential."

"And what does that mean?" Vera asked with a raised eyebrow.

"You know. He's fit. Plenty of muscle, and he doesn't have a bad face, really. If you could get Flint to change his hairstyle and shrink those teeth of his…" Anna smirked. "But I think I understand why you keep him that way. It gives you the power in the relationship, doesn't it?"

Vera clutched her comb tightly. When she spoke, her voice was falsely sweet. "Power?"

Anna shrugged. "Well, of course. You don't actually _like_ that troll, do you? He's ugly, brutish and rather stupid. I remember even you hated him last year. But since you two started dating, he probably thinks he's so lucky to have gotten a girl like you that he's willing to do anything. It must be like having an obedient puppy."

"Just not as cute," Vera added jokingly. She knew what Anna was doing; making subtle but snide remarks about Flint and their relationship was something Anna did in an attempt to make Vera lose her temper. She wasn't going to fall for it. "Are you going into Hogsmeade this weekend?" Vera asked casually.

Anna smirked. "I am, actually. I have a date. Sullivan Fawley, wouldn't you believe."

Ah. So this was why Anna had stayed up until Vera came back to the dorm. She wanted to boast about her latest conquest. Vera leaned back on her bed. "Fawley's a Hufflepuff, isn't he?" she asked pointedly.

"So?" Anna demanded.

"Merely an observation. I'm happy for you," Vera replied. She slid her legs under the covers of her bed, before reaching out to grab hold of the curtain that separated both their beds. She gave Anna a sweet smile. "Good night!" she called out, before yanking the curtain shut. She caught a glimpse of Anna's hateful sneer before her face disappeared from sight.

 _Because deep down, we all hate each other._

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 **A/N – Thank you for your reviews, rosaruna3713 and iAndromeda! I hope you enjoyed this chapter too!**

 **Just a thought- while I don't have this story completely planned out, Marcus Flint IS endgame. Just saying. I don't really intend for this to be a 'root-for-your-favorite-guy' story. Not giving too much away, though.**

 **Thanks for reading, everyone! Share your thoughts!**


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

When Vera Selwyn sat down to breakfast the next morning, she realized she could place all the people around her into one of two categories; those with flaws she could tolerate, and those with flaws that she could not. The first category was filled with people like Anna Travers; she was insecure and often tried to quietly snub others to make herself feel better, but Vera could put up with that. That was a _tolerable fault_.

The second category was filled with people like Miles Bletchley. Bletchley, who was a rude and lazy arsehole, and demanded that everyone else do his work for him while at the same time being completely ungrateful. And Percy Weasley, who thought that he was perfect and everyone was intellectually beneath him. Vera couldn't stand these people; these were the _intolerable_ faults.

"Good morning, darling."

Vera felt a hand on her shoulder, followed by a soft pressure on her cheek. She didn't have to look up; the smell of mud and broom polish told her that it was her loving boyfriend. Flint slid into the empty seat beside her and reached for some toast. Vera forced a smile at him. "Good morning."

"Sleep well?" Flint asked, as he stuffed an entire piece of toast into his mouth in one shot. Vera winced slightly. Well. Perhaps his lack of table manners fell slightly more into the _intolerable c_ ategory. She decided to ignore it and turned back to her own breakfast.

"I slept wonderfully," she replied calmly.

Flint swallowed his food and smiled. He leaned closer, until his lips were just beside her ear. "I dreamt about you," he whispered huskily. Vera felt a slight shiver rack her body, but she tried to stay still. He placed his hand on her lap, slowly running his thumb over her thigh. "I dreamt that you and I were alone in the-"

"Oi, Flint!" a voice interrupted them and Flint pulled away from Vera reluctantly. His hand stayed in her lap, however, as two of the Slytherin boys from the Quidditch team came up to them. Flint looked up as they approached. "When's practice today?" Terrence Higgs demanded. "Bletchley's been going around saying it's been cancelled."

"Bletchley's going to get my broom up his arse if he doesn't stop spreading false news," Flint replied irritably. He looked up at Higgs and Pucey. "Practice is at half past five. Anyone who's late gets to stay after and polish everyone else's brooms by hand. You tell Bletchley _that_."

He looked serious; both Slytherin players nodded and hurried off, presumably to tell Bletchley that he was in trouble if he didn't turn up to practice. Flint turned back to Vera, who had been watching the exchange curiously. She gave Flint a small smirk. "Bletchley's a bloody pain, isn't he?" Vera asked lightly.

Flint raised an eyebrow, concerned. "Has he been bothering you, darling?"

"Not exactly," she replied. "But you should know, the reason he's trying to get practice cancelled is because he's got detention this evening. Hasn't submitted his last three Transfiguration assignments. He's been begging me to plead with McGonagall on his behalf for days now, it's such a pain."

Flint looked amused. "Really, now? You won't go talk to McGonagall for your own cousin?"

"Bletchley's only a second cousin, and that's not saying much. You should tell your _players_ to focus on their studies if they don't want Professors pulling them out of the Quidditch team," Vera pointed out. She knew it was a long shot. Flint's own grades had been dancing on the edge for a while now, he was in no position to tell Bletchley to buck up. Flint merely shrugged and reached for another piece of toast.

"I'll scare the little prick out of bothering you," Flint promised. "If he wasn't such a bloody good Keeper…"

Vera nodded. She watched him stuff his face with another large chunk of toast, before blinking up at him. "Can I come watch Quidditch practice today?" she asked sweetly.

Flint swallowed his mouthful and grinned. "Really, darling, I'm sure you have better things to do. Besides, I'll be busy screaming at the lads, I won't be able to pay you any attention. But you could always come by after, we could take a walk around the Lake?"

Vera turned away from him, her lips pressed tightly together. "Can't, I have a Prefect meeting," she replied curtly before grabbing her bag. She stood up and slung it over her shoulder. Flint looked disappointed and she bent over to peck his cheek. "I'll see you during lunch, then."

"All right," Flint replied. He watched as Vera swiftly left for class, his eyes following her graceful form until it was completely out of sight. Then he grabbed for more toast.

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"Can you believe Professor Binns gave us _two e_ ssays to hand in by Monday? When are we going to write _two_ essays? It's a Hogsmeade weekend, I am absolutely unwilling to sit indoors and do homework! And weren't you going into town with Percy Weasley…?"

Vera Selwyn rolled her eyes. She was sitting behind a pair of unusually chatty Ravenclaw girls, and Professor Flitwick was late to class. It was very unfortunate; a classroom full of studious Ravenclaws and she had landed the seat behind the two biggest gabs. Her head was beginning to ache from their chattering.

"What sort of Ravenclaws are you?" Anna Travers finally demanded. She had been listening to their conversation as well, having had nothing better to do. Anna leaned forward across the desk, her mouth twisted into a sneer. "Complaining about homework? Don't you bloody Ravenclaws _like s_ tudying?"

Penelope Clearwater turned around, looking quite startled. "Being Ravenclaws doesn't mean that we particularly relish in doing mundane assignments. We prefer those tasks which challenge our intellect rather than involve rote learning. The stereotypical idea that Ravenclaws like homework is a complete misconception, considering-"

Anna rolled her eyes. "Oh, leave it alone. I can't stand to listen to you anymore."

Vera smirked. "Oh, cut the poor girl some slack, Anna. From what I hear, she's just begun dating Percy Weasley. Being from privileged backgrounds, it is our duty to show sympathy towards the less fortunate."

Penelope Clearwater gaped at her, looking annoyed. "Percy's not _less fortunate-_ "

"Is it true that the Weasleys live in a hole?" Anna piped up. "Sounds terribly unhygienic, doesn't it?"

"It does. Perhaps we should gift them hampers with soap this Christmas? As a gesture of kindness, of course," Vera pointed out sweetly. She glanced at Penelope Clearwater, who was glaring at them. "Do you think Weasley would like that, Clearwater? I do so enjoy giving back to the needy during the festive season…"

"You're terrible," Penelope snapped.

"Us? Merlin, we were only trying to be kind!" Vera cried, exchanging an outraged look with Anna. "Has charity become unacceptable now? I wonder if Weasley knows how ungrateful you really are, Clearwater. Doubt he'd fancy you as much, then."

"It's probably for the best," Anna mused. "Imagine having to live in the hole with him once you're married. There's already so many of them, perhaps you'll have to dig a bigger hole. Do be careful. My uncle works at St. Mungo's, and he says that some breeds of rats and earthworms are spreading a dragon pox epidemic again. Wouldn't want you falling sick."

"You Slytherins are despicable-"

"Oh, surely not!" Vera cut her off. "Being Slytherins doesn't mean we're bad people. _You see,_ the stereotypical idea that Slytherins are spiteful is a common misconception. I hope you understand." Before Penelope could retort, Professor Flitwick entered the classroom and everyone fell silent. Vera merely shot the Ravenclaw a sweet smile, before turning to face the front.

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Vera sighed as she followed the rest of the students into the dim dungeon where their Potions classes were held. Her assigned seat was in the corner row against the wall; although that wasn't much use when there were no windows. She frowned and sat down quietly, exchanging pained glances with Anna across the aisle. Anna's Gryffindor partner was a brutally clumsy girl who had once managed to set herself on fire in the middle of class.

"Morning," Wood greeted calmly, as he slid into his seat. Vera glanced at him and gave him a small nod. For some reason, Oliver Wood didn't get on her nerves quite as much as Percy Weasley had. All the same, he was still a Gryffindor. Professor Snape entered the classroom with his usual dramatic swish. Vera sighed and pulled out her notebook, flicking the tip of her quill absent-mindedly as he began to explain the Potion for that day's class.

Vera made it a point to take notes in Snape's class. While she had always gotten excellent grades by virtue of being a Slytherin, Snape couldn't help her during the OWLs. Despite her attempts to concentrate, she was extremely aware of the fact that Oliver Wood was fidgeting beside her. His fingers were twitching oddly and he was clutching his quill, looking as though he desperately wanted to write something, but was unable to.

"Would you stop that?" Vera hissed at him under her breath. "You're distracting me."

"Sorry," Oliver apologized quickly.

He was still for a few moments, but he immediately began moving again, his fingers tracing tiny circles on the desk. Vera took a deep breath and waited until Professor Snape had turned to scold some unsuspecting Gryffindor. Then she glared at Wood again. "You're doing it again. _What_ exactly are you trying to do?" she demanded.

Wood became still, his fingers tensing as he clenched them into a fist. "Nothing."

"It's clearly not _nothing,_ you're twitching like you've just been bitten by a Venomous Tentacula."

"Venomous what?"

Vera shook her head, as Snape glanced in their direction and she quickly turned back to her notes before he could scold them. "Nothing. Just stay still," she muttered. She began scribbling notes again as Professor Snape continued to speak. Wood was still for some time, but he began to shift in his seat again, first resting his elbows on the table, then putting his hands in his lap, then flicking his quill against the table absent-mindedly. Vera turned to give him a murderous glare.

Wood noticed her eyes burning through him and glanced at her, a little startled. Had he been fidgeting again? He realized that he'd been bouncing his leg up and down under the table and it was rocking both his desk and her connected one. He instantly went still. "Sorry-"

"Just how neurotic are you?" Vera snapped. She gave him a dark look. Oliver felt a little ashamed and opened his mouth to offer an explanation, but he was cut off by Professor Snape from the front of the class. He'd noticed that something fishy was going on, and his hooked nose was looking down at them with distaste.

"Is there a problem, Miss Selwyn, Mr. Wood?" Snape drawled.

Vera cursed internally. Great. Now the stupid prick had gotten them into trouble with Snape. She forced a calm expression on her face and turned to face the Professor with a small smile. "Not exactly, Professor. Wood was just fidgeting so much, I was asking him if he desperately needed to take a piss."

There was a collective chuckle from most of the Slytherin students. Even Snape looked mildly amused as he looked at a red-faced Oliver. "Do you require the use of the lavatory, Mr. Wood?"

"No, sir," Wood choked out.

"I see. All the same, I must recommend that all students indulge in using the lavatory _before_ my class to avoid interruptions," Snape replied smugly. He swished around to face the board, while most of the Slytherin students eyed Wood and snickered under their breath. He clenched his fists and glanced sideways at Vera. She looked rather pleased with herself.

"That was unnecessary," Wood muttered. Vera merely blinked at him innocently. She gave him a surprisingly sweet smile before turning back to her notes, leaving Wood slightly bewildered. He frowned and ignored her, resting his head on the table and closing his eyes for the rest of the class. Perhaps it would help him calm down.

The bell rang loudly, and Wood finally lifted his head up from the desk. Students were getting out of their seats and gathering their things. Vera was also closing her ink bottle and stuffing it into her bag, when she noticed that Wood was awake. She raised an eyebrow. "So, what exactly _were_ you trying to do if you didn't need the loo?" she asked coolly.

Oliver tensed and frowned at her. "Nothing."

"I see," Vera replied disbelievingly. "You know, there's a potion to cure urinary retention, you should check in the library under the healing-"

"That's not it!" Oliver snapped. "I'd just thought of this excellent Quidditch formation but I couldn't write it down, because you would see it. I was trying not to forget it, but it slipped out of my mind when you announced to the entire class that I had to _take a piss."_

Vera looked amused. She stuffed her notebook into her bag and began the motion of zipping it shut. "Do you often find yourself struck with sudden inspiration during class hours?" she enquired curiously. "Or do your creatives juices flow better on a full bladder?"

Oliver frowned and opened his mouth to retort, but he was cut off by another girl approaching their desk. Anna Travers came up to them with her bag slung over her shoulder. She gave Oliver a distasteful look before turning to Vera. "Come on then, what's taking you so long? I'm starving," Anna said.

"Coming," Vera replied as she slung her bag over her shoulder.

Anna smirked lightly at Wood. "Be careful, Wood. I hear you can get infections from holding in your piss for too long-"

"Yes, _thank you,_ I know that," Wood snapped. Now the Slytherins were going to be making pee jokes at him all day. With an irritated frown, he grabbed his things and walked away from the two giggling Slytherin girls. Once he was out of sight, Vera and Anna walked out of the dungeons as well.

"Well, then. Where's your boyfriend today? Doesn't Flint always come meet you after class. It's almost like he doesn't have any classes of his own, the way he carries your things around everywhere…" Anna mused. It was another subtle jab at Flint- everyone knew that he got barely any OWLs and hence had free periods for most of the day. He spent many of them following Vera around like a lost puppy.

Vera ignored the insult. "Dunno. Probably busy with Quidditch."

They crossed the courtyard to take a shortcut to the Great Hall. Vera spotted her boyfriend; he was with two other large Slytherin boys, and they were intimidating a pair of first years. They had the tiny little Hufflepuffs trembling with their backs against the stone wall. Vera sighed. "There he is. They're bullying the first years again. Honestly, _every year…"_

Anna spotted the senior Slytherin boys as well. "They're probably muggleborns anyway."

Vera shook her head. "I'm too hungry to tell anyone off now. Marcus knows not to go too far. What do you think's for lunch today? I hope they have those roast potatoes again…"

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 **A/N – Thanks for reading! I know these few chapters have been a little boring, but they were sort of to set the tone. The real story should begin soon! Do leave a review!**


	4. Chapter 4

**Chapter 4**

"Selwyn!"

Vera was walking down the corridor when she heard the familiar voice call after her. She winced and cursed under her breath. It was late, almost curfew. What did Miles Bletchley want now? Stopping in her tracks, she slowly turned around and plastered a sweet smile on her face. "Yes, Bletchley?"

Bletchley stopped just in front of her, looking angry. "McGonagall kept me in detention for three hours today! I missed the whole of Quidditch practice because of you!"

"Because of _me_?" Vera repeated icily.

"That's right. You're a Prefect, aren't you? You were supposed to go talk to the Professor and get me out of detention for practice. I've been telling you for days to go do it!"

"I think you'll find that isn't listed in my official duties, _Bletchley."_

Miles Bletchley glared at her. "Well, that's bloody fantastic, isn't it? Now Flint's pissed at me, he's got me sitting out the first match of the season and cleaning everyone's broomsticks. Can't you go talk to your boyfriend and tell him to cut me some slack? It's not like I missed practice on _purpose_ -"

Vera felt anger boiling up inside of her. She loathed Miles Bletchley- so much so that her hand itched to grab her wand and hex him right there. But her facial expression remained calm. She merely raised an eyebrow. "It's fascinating how you manage to hold me responsible forall your problems in life," Vera replied. "But the truth this, I really don't care what happens to you. So no, I will not speak to either Professor McGonagall or Marcus. Go shove your broom up your arse, Bletchley."

"You'll regret speaking to me that way," Bletchley fumed.

"Will I? Will I really be the one to regret it?" Vera demanded. Something inside of her snapped, and she finally reached for her wand, whipping it out. She gave him a rough shove and he looked startled as his back hit the wall and her wand brushed against his throat. "Allow me to clarify our situation. I am a _Prefect,_ which means I could award you detention for the rest of the school year and nobody could do a bloody thing. I'm the girlfriend of your Quidditch captain, and I don't doubt that he _will_ drop permanently from the team, if I tell him you've been harassing me. _I have the power to ruin your life._ Is that understood?"

Miles stared up at her, his eyes wide. He nodded slowly, and Vera felt her anger disappear as she looked at his pathetic form. She put her wand away in a swift motion and then hurried down the hallway, taking deep breaths. She wasn't one to lose her temper. Vera could normally maintain a straight face with fellow Slytherins, in even the most aggravating situations. What was wrong with her today?

 _I need to cool down._

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Vera stumbled out onto the Grounds, her head still spinning slightly from almost hexing Miles Bletchley. She didn't usually lose her temper like this, but she'd been feeling on edge for a few days now. Her feet picked up speed as she crossed the grounds and headed towards the Quidditch pitch. She could feel her hands trembling; she wasn't sure if it was because of the cold or her encounter with Miles.

Vera stopped at the tent-like structures near the Quidditch pitch, which served as locker rooms for the players. She entered it swiftly and left the tent entrance flapping slightly behind her. There was a broomshed in the corner and Vera yanked it open, whipping out her wand. " _Accio broom,_ " she muttered at the tangled mess of brooms. A beautiful Nimbus 2000 came sailing out and landed in her other hand.

"I always wondered who that one belonged to."

Vera whirled around and pointed her wand at the person standing behind her. It was dark, but as her brain processed the voice, she realized there was no mistaking the heavily-accented Scottish drawl. Her fingers clutched the wand tightly. "What are you doing here, Wood?"

Wood raised an eyebrow. "We had Quidditch practice a little while ago, I was clearing up and putting the balls away. What are _you_ doing here, Selwyn? It's past curfew."

"I'm a Prefect."

"Doesn't explain what you're doing here," Woof replied, although he had a slightly knowing glint in his eye. Vera stood still as he stepped closer to her and leaned down to inspect her broom. "Yes, this is the one. I always thought it stood out. Relatively new, kept in perfect condition and clearly polished regularly; and yet, the owner chooses to store it in the collective broomshed rather than keep it safe in their dorm. Odd, don't you think?"

Vera raised an eyebrow. "Not particularly."

"I think it is."

" _I_ think it's just passed curfew and you'll get detention if you're out here for much longer, Wood," Vera replied. Her knuckles were turning white as she clutched the broomstick. She hadn't expected to get caught; how had she been so careless? "So unless you want me to drag you to your Head of House-"

"You can't do that without explaining why you were out here," Wood replied curtly. To be honest, he was still feeling rather resentful about her humiliating him in Potions class- he had no desire to make things easier for Vera Selwyn. "I highly doubt Prefects are expected to patrol the locker rooms at this hour of night. Your duties are restricted to the castle."

Vera rolled her eyes. "What, do you think you have me at some sort of stalemate?"

Oliver shrugged. "Perhaps."

"Well, considering neither of us can really rat out the other without getting in trouble ourselves, I see no need for further discussion," Vera replied. She gripped her broom a little tighter and walked past him. A still-open box of Quidditch balls was lying there. Vera picked up the Quaffle. She had just reached the entrance to the tent when Wood called after her.

"Wait!"

Vera turned and glanced at him enquiringly.

"How would you like a Keeper?"

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Vera tucked the Quaffle under her arm as she hovered in the air, a little distance away from the Quidditch hoops. Wood was positioned in front of the hoops as well; he was securing his Keeper gloves on his hands and then held his arms up in the air once he was done. "Ready!" he called out to her. "Don't worry, Selwyn, I'll go easy on you!"

Vera felt a sudden surge of irritation at him and she zoomed towards the right, flinging the Quaffle at him quickly. Wood reacted; he hadn't expected it to come so fast and he only managed to stop it with the tips of his fingers. He stared up at her with a raised eyebrow. _So she can play._ "Not bad, Selwyn!" he called out, tossing the Quaffle back to her. "You're fast- but you need to put more strength into it."

Vera raised an eyebrow. "You're not my captain. I don't want your bloody feedback."

"Is that how it is?' Wood asked. He braced himself. "All right, come at me again, then."

"With pleasure." Vera repositioned herself at the penalty point, and held the Quaffle in one hand. Her heartbeat was thudding as she thrust forward with speed. She made a slight feint to the left. Wood obediently moved towards the left hoop, and Vera hurled the Quaffle into the right-most hoop. It sailed through smoothly. Vera scoffed. "The hell was that, Wood? You call yourself a Quidditch captain?"

Wood recovered slightly, drifting back towards the middle hoop. "Didn't expect you could pull off a simple feint," he admitted grudgingly.

"Never underestimate your opponent," Vera replied smoothly.

"Yeah, yeah, I know. Who taught you how to play Quidditch?"

"None of your business." Vera retrieved the Quaffle and then went back to her original position. "Can you take another one, or are you too tired?"

Wood glared at her. "You just got here. I've been practicing with my team all evening so I'm exhausted. It's a little unfair, don't you think?"

"You were the one that offered."

Wood sighed and frowned. He couldn't believe that he'd been tricked by this girl; this girl who wasn't even on her house Quidditch team and was half his size. She was hovering in mid-air, her dark eyes fixed on him as she waited for his response. He took a deep breath and then nodded, calming himself. "One more, then. Give it all you've got."

"With pleasure," Vera replied. She swung her arm back and loosely aimed the Quaffle at the right hoop. It was a very simple, straightforward shot. Wood was surprised; he'd expected something a little better. He made a simple dive and whacked the ball away from the hoop. He straightened up slowly and turned to ask if that was all Vera could do; just in time to see her swerve and whack the rebounded Quaffle with the end of her broom. It sailed through the opposite hoop smoothly, before Wood could react. He gaped at her. "I think I win," Vera replied calmly.

"That was a Finbourgh Flick!" Wood cried out in surprise. "You hit it with the end of your broom!"

"And you failed to catch it. Disappointing."

"Only because I wasn't expecting you to pull a stunt like that!" Wood replied. He couldn't believe that this girl could pull off a _Flick._ None of the Chasers on the Gryffindor team had ever managed one. He retrieved the Quaffle and then flew closer to Vera, who was still hovering in mid-air. "Why aren't you on the Slytherin team?"

Vera held her hand out for the Quaffle. Her expression was hard. "What do they need me for? Flint managed to crush the Gryffindors by himself just fine, last year. Focus on your own team."

"My team this year is excellent," Wood replied. "But I've never seen any of them pull off a _Finborough Flick._ It's bloody difficult to even hit the Quaffle with your broom, much less make it through the hoop. Your talent is being wasted in Slytherin. You should try out for the Quidditch team."

Vera was silent. She zoomed towards Wood and roughly snatched the Quaffle back from him. He turned and watched as she tossed the Quaffle in the air and then smoothly hit it with her broom as it fell back down; an action that resembled a muggle tennis serve. Wood bit his lip as he noticed that she suddenly seemed more stiff. "You _have_ tried out, haven't you?" he called after her.

Vera was silent.

"Did they reject you?" he asked. Wood slowly flew towards her. "Because you're a girl?"

Vera took a deep breath. Her shoulder were still stiff and she could feel Wood hovering behind her uncertainly. Her fingers clutched the Quaffle.

"No, they didn't reject me," she said. Her voice was quiet, yet dangerous; it sent a shiver down Oliver Wood's spine. Vera flung the Quaffle heavily towards the undefended hoops. It soared through easily.

"They never even let me try out."

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When Vera reached the Slytherin common room later that night, she noticed that there was a commotion near the fireplace. She paused and frowned. It was unusual for so many people to be making so much noise this late at night. Curious, Vera walked towards the small crowd.

Miles Bletchley was in the middle, kneeling on the ground as he clutched his face desperately. Vera winced instantly. Some sort of disgusting yellow pus was oozing out from between his fingers, along with red streams of what could only be blood. He was wailing in pain. "I'm sorry!" Bletchley was crying pathetically. "It hurts! Just stop it, already, please!"

"What the _hell?"_ Vera demanded. She looked up and her eyes connected with her boyfriend's. Marcus Flint was standing just a few steps away, his wand held loosely by his side. Vera sighed and took a deep breath. There were a few girls in the crowd squealing in disgust and a couple of boys laughing. She glanced around and searched for some half-decent blokes. "Pucey! Higgs! Get over here, help me carry this bloody idiot to the Hospital Wing."

There was a slight hesitation. Both Adrian Pucey and Terence Higgs looked uncertain; they were looking nervously at Flint. Vera glared at them darkly. " _Help him now,_ unless you want me to tell Snape that the two of you were the ones who did this," Vera repeated firmly.

They both moved into action; they helped haul a sobbing Miles Bletchley to his feet and began to carry him out of the common room. Vera turned to follow them, when she heard Marcus Flint call after her nervously. "Vera-"

"I'll talk to you later," Vera replied curtly, not even bothering to look at him. She hurried after the three of them to the Hospital Wing, muttering s _courgify_ under her breath to clean up the trails of blood and pus he was leaving behind.

After all, it wouldn't do to have Filch throwing a fit at them.

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 **A/N – Thanks for reading, everyone! Hope you enjoyed this!  
**

**Thanks, rosaruna3713, your encouragement really helps!  
Thank you for your review, Flowergirl! I promise all of your questions will be answered in due time! Maybe you've gotten a glimpse of some answers today? I've never abandoned a story for lack of reviews; although I have done so for stories where my ideas ran dry and I lost interest. But I have a lot of ideas in store for this one at the moment!**


	5. Chapter 5

**Chapter 5**

Vera walked back towards the Slytherin Common Room, exhausted. She had strained herself playing against Wood earlier that evening, and then cleaning up Miles Bletchley's pus and blood across half the castle. Then she'd had to run and get Professor Snape and answer all his questions, while he interrogated both her and an injured Miles in the Hospital Wing.

Pucey and Higgs were waiting outside; they'd been thrown out of the Hospital Wing by Madam Pomfrey, who felt that there were too many people crowding around Miles and he needed breathing space. Both Slytherin boys straightened up when they saw Vera. "Well? What happened? Are- is anyone in trouble?" Pucey asked nervously.

Vera narrowed her eyes. "I don't know. Why don't you two tell me how it really happened?"

Higgs and Pucey exchanged glances. "Well… it was Bletchley's own fault, really. He came back to the common room just before curfew, started blabbering something about how you'd almost killed him, kept saying that you were completely _mental_ and that you needed to be locked up because you'd attacked him for no reason." Pucey hesitated. "Well, Flint heard him and he got pissed, so he sort of, you know, grabbed him by the collar and shook him up a little."

Vera sighed and shook her head. _Idiots._ "Then?"

"Well, Bletchley still wouldn't stop mouthing off. He kept saying ugly things; mostly about you and Flint and about your relationship. Flint completely lost it, then. He sort of threw Miles across the common room and then hexed him a few times. That's when Miles started sobbing and you turned up."

"I see," Vera replied with a frown. She couldn't believe the level of stupidity these boys displayed at times; it was almost astounding. She ran a hand down her face, taking a deep breath. "Well, I think it's all right, now. I convinced Bletchley to tell Snape that it was an accident. He can't really tell the truth anyway; not without a lot of other things coming out as well. Nobody's in trouble at the moment."

Pucey and Higgs looked relieved. "Thank Merlin."

"Yeah," Vera replied. She walked past them and entered the Slytherin common room. It was relatively empty; most people had probably hurried back to bed to avoid getting involved in the mess. Flint was sitting alone by the fire and he spotted her instantly. His eyes widened and Vera sighed and walked over to him. She sank down into the leather sofa next to him and felt her muscles relax. "Hell, I'm exhausted."

"Darling-"

"That was really stupid, Marcus."

"I know," Flint mumbled. He was looking at her nervously. "I'm sorry. I really am. I just knew that he'd been harassing you and when he was acting like such an ungrateful cunt I just had to teach him a lesson, the scumbag's had it coming to him for a while now-"

Vera glanced at Flint out of the corner of her eye. "I understand he's a pain. But you know better than to hex a fellow Slytherin," she replied sternly.

"I'm sorry," Flint repeated. He reached for Vera's hand and squeezed it gently. His dark eyes were pleading with her. "Are you really pissed at me?"

"No, I just wish you'd be more careful," Vera replied, squeezing his hand in return. She scooted down the sofa until she was leaning into his side. He wrapped a comforting arm around her. Vera closed her eyes and pressed the side of her face into his shoulder. "I don't want you getting into trouble. I had to convince Bletchley to tell Snape it was an accident. What even made you lose your temper? I've never seen you hex another Slytherin before."

Flint hesitated. He wrapped his arms around Vera and pressed his cheek against her hair. "Nothing."

"Tell me the truth, Marcus."

"Darling, it's nothing." He looked down at Vera and spotted the disbelieving look she was giving him. "It won't happen again, I promise. I never meant to get you involved. You know that, right? I just got so angry at the thought of that prick bothering you-"

"I can take care of myself, Marcus."

Flint smiled and wrapped his arms around Vera more tightly. His fingers ran through her hair and he kissed her forehead gently. "I know, darling. I love that about you. I don't even know what you really need me for," he admitted. It was said lightheartedly; but Vera heard the insecurity in his voice. It slipped out every so often, when something like this happened. He would subtly admit that he didn't know why she was with him.

Vera leaned up, pressing a kiss to his lips. He returned it softly, caressing her lips with his. They kissed for a long moment, before Vera gently pulled away. She could see his dark eyes looking down at her worriedly. "Because you're more than everyone else thinks you are," Vera whispered quietly. "And I love how only I can see this sweet, gentle, caring side of you."

Flint looked down at her, a slight tinge appearing in his cheeks. "You're the only one who brings it out," he admitted quietly.

Vera rested her head against his chest, curling up closer to him. "I'm glad," she whispered. "Can we go into Hogsmeade together? It's been a while since we've gone out."

"Anything you want, darling," Marcus promised.

Vera smiled and nodded. _That's right. Anything. You would do anything for me, Marcus Flint._

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 **September 1988, Vera's Second Year**

" _Not a bad lot this time, eh?"_

 _Julian Bulstrode was the Captain of the Slytherin Quidditch team. He stood quietly by the end of the pitch as he watched all the Slytherins who had signed up for try-outs get ready. Some of them were yet to emerge from the locker room. He looked down at the list in front of him, and then passed it to his teammates. "What do you think?" he asked. "Who are we picking?"_

 _Milon, one of the Beaters, gave the captain an amused look. "Shouldn't we wait until after the tryouts to decide that, Bulstrode?"_

 _Bulstrode chuckled. "Don't be daft, Milon. Try-outs are a farce. If we had fair try-outs, we'd be like Hufflepuff. Look at it this way. Talent is one thing, but we need people who fit into our team dynamic. I'd rather have somebody who works well with us and fits in, rather than someone who's extremely talented but doesn't know how to respect our process. Do you understand me?"_

 _The other team players nodded. "I s'pose," Milon agreed._

" _There we go. Now, Flint, give me an idea of what we've got here. Start from the bottom; people we're better off getting rid of in the beginning," the captain ordered._

 _Marcus Flint nodded, quickly opening the parchment which contained all the signed up students. He was the youngest among the existing team and desperately wanted someone younger to push around. "Um, there's about three or four first years," Flint began._

" _Bloody hell. Every year, eh? Don't they ever learn?" Bulstrode wondered. "All right, we'll send them off. Second years. Talk to me about them. They're usually just as pathetic."_

" _Erm, well, there's Miles Bletchley. Bit of an arrogant prick, that one," Flint pointed out helpfully. "Adrian Pucey. Never heard of him. And erm.. bloody hell, I think this a girl's name. Vera Selwyn? I've seen this one around, she's that tiny-"_

 _Bulstrode sighed and ran a hand over his face. "And here I thought we had a good lot this year. I'm getting rid of all of them. Actually- maybe I'll keep Pucey around. Do you think he's a half-blood? Milon, find out for me."_

 _Milon nodded. "Yeah, all right."_

" _Let's get this bloody thing started then," Bulstrode replied. He stepped forward and clapped his hands loudly, getting everyone's attention. "All right! Everyone get your gear and stand behind this line! This is going to be quick; nobody's got all day. We'll go year-wise. First years! Step forward!"_

 _A group of about four nervous-looking, tiny first years stepped forward. Bulstrode raised an eyebrow at them. "Welcome to Hogwarts, pleasure to have you here. That being said, Slytherin house does not take first years into the Quidditch team. The faster you clear out, the better."_

 _One of the first years opened his mouth to retort. "But-"_

" _But what?" Bulstrode asked him dangerously. He stepped forward so he was towering over the small boy. "Speak up so I can hear you."_

" _T-there's no rule against taking first years into the Quidditch team…"_

 _Bulstrode smirked and reached down to pat the boy's head. "I like your cheek. But let me make something clear so you can spend the next seven years of your life in Slytherin peacefully." He lowered his voice. "Nobody gives a bloody fuck what's written in the rulebook. It's all about power. Whoever wields this power- well, their word becomes the rule."_

 _The boy swallowed. "O-oh."_

" _That's right. Now unless you want to be strung upside down in only your knickers from the top of the Astronomy tower, I suggest you gather your things and bugger off."_

 _The first years left quickly, none of them bothering to look back. Bulstrode looked pleased with himself as he straightened up and then clapped his hands again. "All right! Second years, step forward!"_

 _Miles Bletchley, Vera Selwyn and Adrian Pucey stepped forward. While none of them were trembling quite as much as the first years, they still looked understandably nervous. Vera clutched her broom tightly, her hands shaking a little. Bulstrode walked over to them. He stood in front of them with a sigh. "How extremely dismal. Bletchley, is it?"_

 _Miles stood with his head high. "That's right, Miles Bletchley."_

" _Too scrawny. Come back once you've hit puberty," Bulstrode said simply. He ignored the indignant look on Miles' face and moved on to Vera, who was standing stiffly beside him._

 _Bulstrode raised an eyebrow at her. Vera could feel herself trembling in anticipation. "Selwyn, is it?" he asked coolly._

" _Yes, sir," Vera replied._

" _Afraid you're in the wrong place, love. Girls don't belong on the Quidditch pitch."_

 _Vera felt her heart sink. She'd had a feeling he would say that, but she was determined not to let it go so easily. She took a deep breath. "But you haven't seen me fly yet, I'm really fast-"_

" _Don't care. Look at you, you're tiny. I could snap you in half with my wrists." Bulstrode leaned down and sighed. "Look, I respect women, all right? Which is why I'm letting you know that you're just going to get hurt here. We play rough. Go back to your dorm."_

 _Vera looked up at him desperately. "Please, just let me try-out and-"_

" _I said no." Bulstrode glared down at her. "There's no point in you trying anything, because you are not getting on this team as long as I'm the fucking captain. Is that understood?"_

 _Vera clenched her fists and nodded silently._

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 **A/N – Thanks for reading and all the reviews, guys! I hope you enjoyed this chapter too!**

 **Also, I've made out Pucey to be a little older than he really is for the purposes of my storyline. Just saying. :P**


	6. Chapter 6

**Chapter 6**

"Finally- first Hogsmeade trip of the year!" Anna Travers declared excitedly. She was practically skipping around the dorm as she tried to get her things together. She ended up knocking over a stack of neatly folded clothes and almost slipping on them. Vera held back a laugh.

"You seem excited."

"You don't," Anna replied with a frown, reaching down to pick up the stray clothes. "Are you going on a date with Flint?"

"I s'pose," Vera replied lightly. "It gets a bit boring, to be honest. Not Marcus, of course. I mean dating in Hogsmeade. There aren't many places to go. There's Madam Puddifoot's, which is fun the first few times but after a while the cramp and all the pink decorations start to get to you. And the Three Broomsticks is a terrible place for a date. Marcus' mates always end up inviting themselves to sit with us and there's no privacy."

Anna smirked. "It seems to me like there's no _spice_ in your relationship," she said pointedly.

"My relationship is fine. It's Hogsmeade that's tasteless. But you haven't been on as many dates there as I have, so you wouldn't feel that way yet," Vera replied smugly. She reached for her handbag and smiled sweetly as Anna. "Well, then, I'm off. Have fun with Fawley."

"I will," Anna called after her quickly, as she walked out of the girls' dorms. Vera straightened her clothes; she was wearing a simple skirt which reached her knees, and a V-necked jumper that showed an appropriate amount of cleavage. Flint had a tendency to look down at her neckline and blush, before trying desperately to maintain eye contact. It was hilarious to watch. As she reached the common room, she found Flint waiting near the entrance.

"Morning, darling," Vera greeted him sweetly. She stood on her tiptoes to kiss him. Flint smiled and pecked her lips quickly before sliding an arm around her. She caught a whiff of something vaguely familiar and blinked. It smelled remotely like Sleekeazy's Hair Potion; she smelled it often enough in the girls' dormitory. Vera noticed that Flint's hair looked nicer than usual. She smiled. "You're looking quite handsome this morning. Did you do something?" she teased.

Flint cleared his throat and looked a little embarrassed. "What?"

"Nothing," Vera replied lightly. She slid her hand into his and they began to leave the castle. She noticed that Marcus was being unusually quiet. She turned and smiled at him. "Is something wrong, darling?"

"No, everything's fine. Nice weather, outside, isn't it?" Flint asked lightly.

Vera shrugged. "A bit chilly, I would say. You feel really warm, though. Are you feeling all right, Marcus?" she slid under his arm and snuggled closer into his side as they walked. It slowed them down a little, but Flint didn't seem to mind. He merely nodded and pulled her closer. Vera shrugged as they walked down to Hogsmeade in a comfortable silence. There were a number of other students around and a few excited-looking third years as well. It was their first trip. Vera looked up at Flint. "How's Quidditch practice going?" she asked casually.

"All right," Flint admitted, before frowning. "Bit of a pain, really. I think we'll have to find a new Keeper, now."

Vera stared at him. "You're removing Bletchley from the team? He'll be out of the Hospital Wing by Monday. Unless- is it because of incident last week? Marcus, don't be silly. You can't keep personal grudges, he's a bloody talented Keeper."

"But his behavior is unacceptable. He's such a prick-"

"Oh, come on. He's all words, you know that. He's a coward on the inside. Looking for a new Keeper at this point would be suicide. What about Harry Potter-"

Flint chuckled and smiled down at her fondly. "You and your fretting. How many times do I have to tell you not to worry about Potter? We'll be perfectly fine. I just need to do something about Bletchley. He'll probably throw a fit once I tell him-"

Vera bit her lip. How was she supposed to convince Marcus Flint that throwing Miles Bletchley off the team was a mad idea? She'd seen the try-outs; there was nobody better than him. "Damn right, he'll throw a fit. Not to mention that he and Bole are mates; if you throw him off then you might have Bole quit in anger too. Do you want to be looking for a Keeper _and_ a Beater?"

Flint smiled and said nothing. Vera stared up at him, waiting for a response, but he was merely smiling stupidly. She raised an eyebrow. "What are you thinking, Marcus?"

Flint shook his head. "Nothing, darling. I was just thinking how sweet it is that you take such an interest in my Quidditch," he admitted with a smile. "Most girls wouldn't bother about it at all. But it's all right, you don't have to listen to me talk about Quidditch all the time. I know you can't possibly be that interested."

Vera bit her lip as she felt a small burst of anger flare up inside her. Taking a deep breath to calm herself down, she smiled at Flint and squeezed his hand. "Don't be silly, darling. I'm interested in anything that you love," she chirped. "After all, Quidditch means everything to you."

"Not quite _everything,_ " Flint said with a smile. His cheeks were slightly flushed as he looked down at her. "There's you as well."

Vera giggled as she swung their entwined hands slightly. "Really? Do I mean that much to you?"

"Of course-"

"Then…" Vera paused for a moment and looked up at him. There was a brief glint in her eyes, and she moved closer so their faces were inches apart. "If you had to choose between me and Quidditch, what would you choose?" she asked softly.

Flint's eyes widened and he stared down at her earnest face, blinking at her suddenly. He opened his mouth to respond, but he was cut off by someone calling out to him. He turned back and noticed a boy from his year approaching them with a smile. "Flint! And Selwyn. Fancy meeting you two here!"

Vera raised an eyebrow as she watched Sullivan Fawley approach them. He grinned, waving a hand. "Haven't run into you in a while, Flint. What have you been up to? Heard you pounded Bletchley in a few days ago," Sullivan said cheerfully. He glanced at Vera. "He's your cousin, isn't he?"

Flint shrugged. "Yeah, and he's a fucking prick. I heard _you_ quit the Hufflepuff Quidditch team."

Sullivan sighed. "That's right. Dad made me, said he wants me to focus on my NEWTs now, since I botched up my OWLs. Well- good news for you, isn't it? Maybe now you've got a chance against us!" Sullivan said with a grin. Vera raised an eyebrow at him. She had often wondered why he wasn't in Slytherin- but he was far too loud, friendly and tactless to fit in among a group of calculating individuals.

"Believe me, Fawley, Hufflepuff isn't my biggest concern, with or without you," Flint replied.

Sullivan shrugged. "Yeah, yeah, all right. Well then- don't let me interrupt your date! I can already see your girlfriend glaring at me. Bloody- you can be pretty scary, can't you, Selwyn? Don't worry, I'm leaving!" he assured her with a grin.

Vera raised an eyebrow. "It's not that. Weren't _you_ supposed to be on a date today?"

Sullivan blinked. "I was?"

"Anna Travers."

"Anna…. Oh! Bloody hell, I completely forgot!" Sullivan frowned and ran his hands through his golden hair. "Actually, I'm pretty sure that was _next_ Hogsmeade weekend. No. I can't remember- do you think she's waiting for me?" he asked nervously.

Vera watched in irritation as Sullivan Fawley hurried away, looking mildly panicked and confused. She turned back to Flint. She'd been desperate to hear his answer to her question, but Flint wasn't looking at her anymore. His gaze had turned towards Madame Puddifoot's, which was just a few steps away. "Shall we get inside? It's getting a little windy out here, isn't it?" Flint asked.

Vera merely nodded silently and followed him into the small tea shop. It was still relatively early and not as cramped as it usually was. Flint headed towards their regular table right beside the window. Vera had selected it herself; she often found herself staring out of it while Flint rambled about something tedious. They had just taken their seats when Madam Puddifoot herself came bustling up to them. "Hello, lovelies," she said sweetly. "If it isn't my favorite little couple. How are you two doing today?"

"Just fine," Vera replied politely. She detested the cheerful woman.

"Lovely, lovely. Had a nice summer, I hope? Wasn't it just around this time last year that the two of you first came in here?" Madam Puddifoot asked pleasantly. "I remember it quite well, now. You two looked so nervous, then- but just look at how perfect you are now!"

Flint looked a little embarrassed and rubbed the back of his neck. "It's true-the first Hogsmeade trip last year was our first date. Today's sort of our anniversary, I s'pose."

Vera blinked at him. _Is he serious? Anniversary? Is that what he's so nervous about?_ She felt like laughing at the thought, but she kept her mouth shut. She couldn't believe that Flint remembered something stupid like that. The thought hadn't even crossed her mind. Madam Puddifoot beamed. "Oh, how lovely! Well, then, what can I get you two?"

Flint glanced at Vera and turned back to the woman. "Just coffee, please."

Vera was relieved when Madam Puddifoot finally disappeared. She rolled her eyes and poked at a frilly napkin before smiling at Flint. "Old hag. She's so old and lonely that she has to live her love life vicariously through us, doesn't she?" Vera joked lightly.

Flint grinned. "True," he agreed. "Bloody, if this wasn't the only place one can get some privacy in Hogsmeade-but then again. She's not going to last much longer. I wonder what'll happen to this place, after."

Vera shrugged as she continued to poke the frilly napkin. "Who cares?"

"I dunno," Flint shrugged and glanced around the tacky tea shop. "It _is_ the first place we went on a date. Maybe we'll look back and think of this place years later, eh? Might be nice."

Vera raised an eyebrow at him. "Years later?" she asked coolly.

Flint blinked and looked a little startled. He suddenly seemed to realize what he had said and his shoulders tensed a little.. "Erm, I mean… it's possible, isn't it? I know we haven't graduated yet, but we will soon, and… I don't see any reason why we might not get married or something in a few years. I'm sure it would make our families happy too…"

He looked nervous and he was stumbling over his words a little. Vera reached across the tiny table and placed her hand over his, entwining their fingers together. Flint looked startled and stopped speaking. "I think that's very sweet," Vera said with a smile. "I'm so happy you feel that way, darling."

Flint squeezed her hand in return and smiled, still looking slightly embarrassed. Vera returned the smile, before she noticed another couple entering the small tea shop. Vera leaned back and made a face. "Yuck. Looks like this place had been infested already. What a pity," she mumbled. Flint glanced behind him as well, just in time to see Percy Weasley and Penelope Clearwater enter the tea shop.

"Is that a Weasley?" Flint asked distastefully.

"The worst kind," Vera replied with a frown. She clasped Flint's hand again to get his attention. "Let's not look at them and ruin our day. What were we talking about before that oaf Sullivan Fawley interrupted us?" she asked sweetly.

Marcus furrowed his eyebrows together. "Can't remember, really."

 _You stupid troll._ "Oh. All right, then. Where do you want to go after this? Is there any shopping you want to do?"

"Nothing in particular, although I suppose it might be nice to stop by Honeydukes."

Madam Puddifoot came bustling up to them before Vera could attempt to steer the conversation back to Quidditch. She placed two slightly pale coffees in front of them, along with a generous slice of chocolate cake on a plate and a tiny fork. She beamed at them fondly. "On the house, dears, to celebrate your anniversary," she gushed, before patting fist Vera and then Flint on the head. "You two have fun, now!"

Vera made a face once Madam Puddifoot had left and brushed off the top of her head in disgust. She then looked at Marcus, who was smiling happily at the sight of the cake. He reached for the tiny fork, which looked even smaller between his large fingers. He scooped the biggest chunk of cake he could onto it, and held it out to Vera. "Come on, darling."

Vera resisted the urge to roll her eyes as she leaned forward and closed her mouth over the small mouthful of cake. It was sickeningly sweet, and she had to swallow it forcefully. "Merlin- I don't think there's that much sugar in _sugar_ ," she mumbled.

Marcus shrugged, taking a bite himself. "The fork's too small," he mused as he swallowed. "Do you want more?"

"I'm all right," Vera replied with a sigh. She leaned back in her seat and sipped on the mild coffee as she stared out of the window. Hogsmeade was starting to fill up now, and she could see a number of students on the streets. She watched a few giggling Hufflepuff girls looking around excitedly and a Gryffindor boy who seemed to be desperately apologizing or pleading with his girlfriend as she walked into a shop.

Vera sighed and frowned, remembering the first time she had come here with Marcus Flint.

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 **Late September, 1990**

 _Vera sat across from Marcus Flint silently, scrutinizing him across the tiny table covered in frilly napkins and lace. The coffee tasted terrible, but Flint hadn't said a word about it. He also hadn't complained about the fact that a group of Muggleborn Gryffindors were sitting right behind them and talking far too loudly. Vera had expected him to turn around and at least make a snide remark or a threat, but he hadn't even noticed them._

" _Marcus," Vera said hesitantly. "Are you all right?"_

 _Flint looked up at her with wide eyes, his coffee jerking slightly in his hands. "I'm fine. Why? Is something wrong?"_

" _Nothing," Vera replied. "You've just been acting rather… odd today. If you're feeling unwell, we can always do this some other time. I don't mind."_

 _Flint shook his head quickly. He looked almost embarrassed, and it was making Vera feel extremely uncomfortable. She was used to the rather brash Marcus Flint that was regularly hexing hapless first-years and never passed by a Muggleborn or a Gryffindor without passing a snide remark or bumping into them intentionally. This nervous, blushing troll-man was not what she had expected. "I'm fine," Flint assured her quickly._

 _Vera sighed and stared across at him, her arms folded across her chest. She had expected that she would have to deal with Flint making crude and unsavory remarks, but he had barely said a word. Vera resisted the urge to laugh. Flint was behaving like a blushing schoolboy; his feelings were so transparent. Deciding to play with him, she leaned forward and placed her hand over his on the table. Flint stared at it, wide-eyed. "I'm really disappointed, Marcus."_

 _Flint blinked at her. "W-what?"_

" _You haven't said anything about how I look. I spent so long getting ready for the date," she pouted slightly. Flint's hand was trembling under hers and he quickly put down his coffee._

" _I mean-that's-you…" he took a deep breath and looked at her with wide eyes. "You look gorgeous. You always do, I didn't think… I didn't think I had to tell you that. I mean, since you came back from summer- Merlin-erm…"_

 _He didn't seem to be able to get his words straight. Vera simply smiled. She knew what he was getting at. Vera had a significant growth spurt during the summer break before her fourth year. She'd grown taller, which had made her figure seem slimmer, and her breasts had also grown. "Really? That's so sweet, Marcus. But I'm sure plenty of girls have heard you say that to them."_

 _Marcus shook his head. "Not-not that many."_

" _Really?" Vera stroked the back of his hand slowly. "How many, then?"_

 _Marcus took a deep breath and looked up at Vera with a sigh. Something in him seemed to give up, and he slumped back in his seat slightly. "That is- I can't- oh, bugger it. I've never been on a date with a girl before, all right? And certainly not one as pretty as you, that's why I don't have a bloody clue what to do. Look- laugh at me if you want, just don't tell anyone, for Merlin's sake."_

Ah. Finally, it had come out. _Vera blinked up at him with her large eyes. "Do I look like I'm laughing, Marcus?"_

 _Flint stared at her, with a slightly indignant expression. "Well, no, but…"_

" _I don't see what's funny about it," Vera replied simply. "I think it's nice that I'm the first girl you've ever been to Hogsmeade with. You see," she leaned closer and lowered her voice slightly with a smile. "I'm the jealous type."_

 _Flint chuckled, seeming to relax a little. "Aren't we all."_

" _I suppose. Honestly, I'm a little bored of this tea shop. Shall we leave?"_

" _Erm, all right," Flint sat up and blinked. "What do you want to do, then?"_

 _Vera smirked as they both scraped their chairs back and stood up. "Well. I've always wanted to go see the Shrieking Shack, but I've never had the courage to go there alone. I think I'd feel safer if I went with you. Will you take me there?"_

 _Marcus grinned. Finally something that he had a little expertise in. "Yeah, all right!"_

 _They walked out of Madam Puddifoot's, but Vera stopped him just as they exited the doorway. She stood right in front of him, her body slightly pressed up against his as she leaned up to whisper in his ear. "And Marcus… if I get scared, can I hold your hand?"_

 _Marcus flushed and nodded, as Vera smiled at him brilliantly._

 _She had him wrapped around her finger._

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 **A/N – Sorry this update took forever! Hope you all enjoyed it just the same!**

 **Thanks for your reviews, everyone!  
**


	7. Chapter 7

**Chapter 7**

"Well, then… Pucey or Higgs?"

Vera sat silently in her bed, as she listened to the Slytherin girls in her dorm gossip about boys. While they weren't all quite as desperate as Anna Travers, the fifth year Slytherin girls often indulged in late-night gossiping about the boys in their house. Vera joined in on occasion, although her opinion had become slightly less valuable since she had begun dating Flint. She glanced up from her Charms textbook.

"Well, Higgs is taller," Blishwick pointed out. She was a rather tall and awkward girl, with a nose too large for her face. While the Blishwicks had fallen into dishonor some decades back, they seemed to be recovering rather well. "I think height is important; I couldn't stand a boy shorter than me."

"That's because you're taller than most of the boys in our year, Blishwick," Anna replied snidely. "And I personally think Higgs has got a bit of a baby face, even height considered. Pucey looks far more mature. I feel like he might be able to… _teach me a few things."_

There was a slight giggle around the room, before Blishwick frowned and protested. "I don't think Higgs is inexperienced. I've never seen Pucey date anyone before, but Higgs went out with Vera in fourth year, didn't he?" Heads turned to look at Vera. "What was he like?"

Vera blinked as she realized the conversation had suddenly turned to her. "What? Oh-Terence Higgs? It was the end of third year, actually. We weren't really _together,_ to be honest. We went into Hogsmeade once and took a couple walks around the Lake, that was all. He was sweet, a little soft-spoken."

"Really? Is he the shy type?" asked another girl eagerly.

"Dunno, really. It was well over a year ago. Maybe he's more confident now." Vera mused. Then, feeling a little daring, she turned to Anna Travers and gave her a smile. "Oh- I almost forgot! Didn't you go into Hogsmeade with Sullivan Fawley yesterday, Anna? How was he?"

Anna's smile faltered briefly, before composing herself. "Oh- that Hufflepuff. You know what they're like. Always trying too hard, never really understand when they're not wanted. He was clinging onto me so much that I was sick of him by the end of the date. I told him it wouldn't work out."

Another girl piped up. "Really? Fawley? Oh- that's such a pity, he's so fit!"

Anna shrugged. "Yes-well… what can you do?"

Vera rolled her eyes slightly, before fixing her gaze back on her Charms textbook. The girls around her continued to gossip in soft voices, while Vera took a deep breath. She had bigger things to worry about.

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Vera sighed as she entered Potions class. Wood was already sitting in his seat and Vera shot him a glance before settling into her own. She was tired; the girls in her dorm had stayed up gossiping until late into the night and she hadn't had much sleep. Wood looked up at her.

"Morning," he greeted politely.

"Hmm," Vera grunted vaguely in response. She pulled out her textbook and placed it on the table neatly, before setting out her ink and quill. She noticed that Wood was watching her with big eyes and she frowned at him. "What are you staring at?" she hissed.

Wood seemed unfazed by her hostility. Rather, he seemed to be looking at her in rather a different way. It wasn't quite admiration. Fascination, perhaps? Even that was too strong, Vera thought. Either way, his dark brown eyes were lit up. "What other tricks can you do?" he asked eagerly, although his voice still stayed quiet.

Vera glared at him. "Tricks? I'm not a bloody _dog._ "

"I know, I know, I meant-"

"Yeah, Quidditch tricks, I know," Vera replied with a sigh. She glanced at him. "What does it matter? I'm a Slytherin so I can't be on your team, and I'm _also_ not with the rival team. My abilities shouldn't matter to you."

Wood shrugged. "Why do you assume I'm asking with some sort of an ulterior motive? I love Quidditch. Maybe I'm just curious about a talented player. But really-can you do any other stunts? With that Finborough Flick you pulled off, I wouldn't be surprised if you can do a bunch of others. And you never told me where you learnt all that."

"I told you, it's none of your business."

"But-"

"Look," Vera snapped. She turned her body sideways to face Wood and glared at him. "I don't know if you thought we were going to _bond_ over Quidditch or something of the sort, but we're not. I don't socialize with Gryffindors, all right? So unless what you're going to say next has something to do with Potions, _do not talk._ I'm not interested."

Wood fell silent as Professor Snape entered the classroom, and began to announce the page numbers they were required to open. He turned has gaze down to his Potions textbook, but he was still curious. What was it that made Vera Selwyn hide her Quidditch talent? But her lips were pulled into a thin line and he decided it was better to drop it.

Vera sat silently during class, trying to focus on her notes. As Professor Snape drawled on and moved towards the other side of class, a small folded up piece of paper flittered onto Vera's textbook. She frowned and made sure Snape wasn't looking, before unfolding the slip of paper.

 _Back of the broom shed, half past ten._

Vera looked up and made brief eye contact with Terence Higgs, who was sitting two rows ahead of her and to her right. He was watched her quietly, waiting for a response.

Vera gave him a small nod, before crumpling the piece of paper in her fist. 

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"Darling, do you really have to go?" Flint asked, reluctantly. He had his arms wrapped around Vera; the two of them were sitting in a secluded corner of the Slytherin common room, as they usually did every night. Vera could see the dim light from the fire flickering across Flint's face as he looked down at her. "Can't someone else do your prefect duty tonight?"

"Sorry, darling," Vera replied with a soft smile. "But that bloody Weasley's been keeping an eye on me. If I keep skipping duties, he'll probably rat me out. Don't worry, I'll be back soon." She tilted her head up and kissed his lips softly. "Stay up until I return, all right?"

Flint grinned. "And what do I get if I stay up?"

"I'll make it worth your while," Vera promised, softly trailing the tip of a finger across his jaw. He leaned into her touch eagerly, but Vera pulled away, disentangling herself from him and standing up straight. She smiled and waved at him, before grabbing her cloak and hurrying out of the Slytherin Common Room. The corridors were empty just after curfew, and she hurried down them until she could step out of the castle. It was chilly outside. Winter was fast approaching, and Vera hugged her cloak closer around herself as she crossed the lawns to the broom shed and locker room area. She quickly moved around the back of the building.

"What took you so long?" Higgs asked. He had been leaning against the back of the broom shed and he straightened up at the sight of Vera. "I've been waiting for almost ten minutes."

"I had to be careful," Vera replied with a frown. "I'm not actually on prefect duty today. I would have been in trouble if another Prefect had caught me, especially that bloody Weasley. Well, then- what's happening with Bletchley? Last I heard, Flint was booting him."

Terence Higgs sighed and ran a hand through his hair nervously. "I think he might do it."

Vera glared. "You can't let him."

"Well, it's really not in my hands, Vera-"

"Then take it into your hands! You do know that one word about the fact that we used to date and I can make Flint drop you from the team in a heartbeat. He won't even think about it like he's doing with Bletchley," Vera hissed. Her fists were clenched at her sides. "Consider your position for a moment."

Higgs rolled his eyes. "I know my position, your blackmailing doesn't help. If only you could get people _on_ the team as easily as you seem to be able to get them off, perhaps _your_ position would be a little better. Don't blame me for Flint's stupidity."

Vera took a deep breath. She leaned against the broom shed and glanced up at Higgs. "You do know that this Potter boy must be a huge threat, right? Wood wouldn't take such a risk with a first year if he wasn't bloody amazing."

"Are you really that worried about the welfare of the team?"

"What worries me right now is your compete incompetence at being a Slytherin," Vera snapped. "We were just getting Flint to consider the new set of strategies and now he's booting Bletchley from the team. It's one step forward and two back. Bletchley will be replaced by another thick oaf and we'll be back to stage one. A Slytherin team filled with oversized, brainless oafs who don't know which end of the broom to sit on. Will you let this happen?"

"You don't really care about the team." Higgs raised his eyebrows at her. "You just think that if you can get Flint to stop choosing players based on brute strength then there's a chance that he might consider you. But it'll never happen, Vera. He's not going to let you on the team, even if he adopts all the strategies we devised. You're wasting your time."

Vera glared at him. "You have a big mouth for somebody who wouldn't have gotten onto the team if it wasn't for me."

"You didn't do anything-"

"Flint was going to choose that brute Lithgow over you. I was the one who made up a story about Lithgow harassing me so that he would pick you instead, you know this," Vera snapped. She was losing her temper. The reason she had counted on Higgs to be the Seeker of the team was because she thought he had some sense. But it seemed that even he was turning against her. She pulled her cloak more tightly around herself and took a deep breath. "I've worked too hard to let this go to waste, so listen to me, Terence Higgs. You do everything in your power to stop Marcus from booting Bletchley from the team, or the fact that you're my ex-boyfriend comes out and you lose your position. Is that clear?"

Higgs glowered at her. "Fine," he snapped.

Vera nodded and turned around, deciding that the conversation was over. Just as she had taken a few steps away, though, she heard Higgs call after her coldly. "Oye, Selwyn!"

Vera paused. "What?"

"You keep talking about how you have Flint wrapped around your finger and that he's mad about you. Why haven't you given him an ultimatum? Tell him to let you on the Quidditch team or you'll dump him," Higgs demanded.

Vera kept her back turned towards Higgs. Her lips pressed together tightly before she spoke. "If you possess a key, you keep it with you all the time. That way, you can open as many locks as you want, as many times as you want. If you toss away the key, you'll have nothing."

Higgs scoffed. "Spoken like a Ravenclaw. Or are you just afraid he might chose Quidditch over you?"

Vera's shoulders stiffened.

"I'm not afraid of anything," she said coldly, before walking away.

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	8. Chapter 8

**Chapter 8**

 _Vera flipped through the newspaper coolly, watching Flint out of the corner of her eye. He was sitting with some of his friends, playing a game of wizard's chess in the common room. She could tell from a single glance that Flint was losing; things like chess involved strategy which wasn't his forte. Vera sighed and curled her feet closer to her on the couch. She wondered how long it would take for Flint to lose his game and come over to her._

 _Not long at all._

 _He let out a sigh as another boy checkmated him and then announced that he was done. Vera fixed her gaze on the magazine as Flint ambled over to her slowly. He sat on the couch beside her, leaning over to kiss her cheek fondly. "I lost at chess, darling. Won't you comfort me?" he asked cheekily._

 _Vera lowered her newspaper and little and smiled. "Marcus, you shouldn't have played against Pucey in the first place. Besides, I'm reading," she replied, shaking the paper in front of him with a playful smile._

 _Marcus glanced at the newspaper coolly. "What are you reading about?" he asked, although he didn't sound particularly interested. His arm went around her shoulder lightly and he began to kiss her neck, hoping to change her mind and coax her into paying attention to him. Vera held the newspaper tightly and tried to ignore the feeling of his lips on her neck, while showing him the picture he was looking at. "Just a few articles. Look; there's one about some new female players joining the Falmouth Falcons."_

 _Marcus scoffed slightly while his face was still buried in Vera's neck. She could feel his breath on her skin. "No wonder they keep losing this season," he mumbled, before placing another kiss at the crook of her shoulder. "Darling…"_

" _They've put some pictures; a lot of these girls are young. Look; this one's really sexy, isn't she? I always thought a woman on a broom is sort of sexy, don't you?" Vera prompted him. But Marcus was barely listening. One of his hands had come up to rest on her thigh, and was stroking the hem of her skirt. Vera felt a burst of irritation. "Marcus! Are you listening to me?"_

 _He tore his lips away from her neck. "What?" he asked distractedly._

 _Vera pushed the magazine in front of his face. "Don't you find women on brooms sexy?" she demanded._

 _Marcus glanced at the picture of the female Quidditch player for a moment, before smiling and turning to look at Vera. He brought his other hand up to her cheek and gently cupped her face in his hand. "Oh, darling. I know what this is about," he said with an amused chuckle._

 _Vera raised an eyebrow at him. "Do you really?"_

" _Yes. But you don't have to worry. You're the only woman I would ever have eyes for," he replied. He sounded rather pleased with himself, as though he'd gotten an answer right on a trick question. He then leaned in to capture her lips, kissing her softly and slowly. Vera felt him scoot closer, his other hand resuming it's stroking on her thigh. Marcus pulled away slowly and smiled. "I would never fall for a female Quidditch player over you," he cooed sweetly._

 _Vera clenched her fists. "What if I was a female Quidditch player?" she asked sweetly. "Would I look sexy in Quidditch robes and on a broom?"_

 _Marcus chuckled as his hand slowly inched up her thigh. "Don't be silly, darling. You don't have to do things like that for me. You're already sexy enough."_

" _What if I wanted to?" Vera breathed, slowly sliding her hands into his hair while giving him a suggestive look. "Would you like the sight of me on a broom? Would it turn you on?"_

 _Marcus paused for a moment, and then shook his head. "No, Vera, darling, it's not worth it. You might hurt yourself and scratch that beautiful face of yours. I couldn't bear that. You're beautiful the way you are," he replied. He leaned forward to kiss her again and Vera felt a burst of irritation and disappointment as Marcus started kissing her neck again, completely oblivious to the frustration on her face._

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Oliver Wood kept glancing at Vera out of the corner of his eye. She seemed to be in a bad mood; she had entered the class carrying a rather dark aura with her. Her lips were pressed together tightly and her hand was stiff as it moved across the page to write down what Professor Snape was saying. Oliver glanced at his own notes; rather inadequate since he hadn't been paying much attention.

It was when Professor Snape leaned over to scold a boy for sleeping in the classroom that Wood finally leaned over a little and looked at her. "What do you think is a better broom?" he asked her quietly, making sure nobody else could hear. "The Nimbus 1700 or a Cleansweep Seven?"

Vera stared at him. " _What?"_ she hissed.

Wood bit his lip and checked to make sure that Snape was still busy yelling at the boy, before glancing at her. "The Nimbus 1700 or a Cleansweep Seven? I know the Nimbus 2000 beats them both but it's not really affordable and it's only just gotten onto the market so it's a bit of a risk. So which of the other two do you think is better?"

Vera clenched her fist. Was he serious? Hadn't she said the previous day that she had no intention of discussing Quidditch with him? But Wood was blinking at her innocently with big brown eyes and Vera's own brain was whirring. She'd never really thought about which of the two brooms was better. She flicked her quill between her fingers as she considered it. "I suppose it depends on the purpose, really," she muttered grudgingly.

Wood blinked at her. "Purpose? You mean, the position being played?"

Vera fell silent for a moment as Snape glanced in their direction. Once he had turned away and was facing the board at the front of the dungeon, she looked at Wood briefly and nodded. "The Nimbus 1700 can attain higher speeds than the Cleansweep Seven. But it's stability is questionable. It might be all right for Chasers, but a Seeker doesn't just need speed, he needs balance as well. The Cleansweep stays stable even at its highest speed. But of course; Nimbus fixed this in the 2000 series, so the issue of stability is only in the 1700."

There was a pause, as Wood digested her words. He was nodding thoughtfully, tapping the end of his quill against his chin. "You do have a point about the Cleansweep Seven being more stable. It's probably also better for beginners, isn't it?"

Vera rolled her eyes. "Neither of them are beginner brooms, Wood."

"No, I know that, but-"

"Mr. Wood," Snape drawled from across the classroom. He'd caught them talking again and Vera cursed under her breath. Why did she always get caught talking to Wood during Potions class? She stiffened quickly in her seat as Professor Snape glared at them. "Since you deem it unnecessary to pay attention, Mr. Wood, could you share how many grams of powdered moonstone are required for the potion we are currently discussing?"

Wood blinked helplessly. "Er…"

Vera glanced at her notes. She knew the answer, but she avoided Wood's pleading gaze. Did he really think she was going to help him out of the situation? They weren't friends. She covered the answer in her notebook with her hand and Wood cleared his throat. "I… don't know, sir," he admitted finally.

"Five points from Gryffindor," Snape replied curtly, before turning away. "And stop talking. Now, we'll move on to the temperature requirements for the various concoctions…"

Vera glanced at Wood out of the corner of her eye. He looked a little disappointed, but he seemed to get over it quickly and began sketching absent-mindedly on the margins of his parchment. Vera frowned and wondered why Wood had been asking about the brooms. Was it for Potter? She pressed her lips together tightly as the bell finally rang for the end of class. Hurriedly, Vera grabbed her things and left the classroom just as Anna caught up to her. She had a smirk on her face as she began walking beside her.

"What are you and Wood always whispering about in class?" Anna asked sneakily.

Vera made a face. She really needed to stop talking to that boy if she didn't want the other Slytherins to start asking questions. She kept her expression neutral and shrugged. "What any Gryffindor wants, doesn't take notes during class and then wants to copy off me. I was telling him I wouldn't give him any, he should go mooch off some Ravenclaw."

Anna raised an eyebrow. "Really? You should tell Flint, he'll deal with him."

"I don't make my boyfriend knock around everyone who annoys me, Anna," Vera replied with a frown. If she did, Anna herself would be rather high on Vera's list. As they reached the end of the corridor, she turned away from the Great Hall. Anna stared after her, surprised that Vera was going in a different direction.

"Aren't you coming to lunch?" Anna called.

"I'll be there later," Vera replied coolly.

Somebody was about to be released from the Hospital Wing, and she intended to pay him a visit.

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Miles Bletchley sat up in his bed when he saw Vera enter the Hospital Wing coolly and head straight towards him. His eyes widened in a slightly panicked manner and he watched the entrance behind her, probably afraid that Flint would follow her in. When he was certain that Vera was alone, he relaxed a little.

"What are you doing here?" he asked coldly, although his voice was a little weak.

Vera shrugged and pulled up a chair beside his bed. "Paying my cousin a visit. How are you feeling, Bletchley?"

Bletchley frowned. "Why are you _here_ , Selwyn?"

She sighed and folded her arms across her chest. She forgot for a moment that Bletchley wasn't Flint; as annoying and a pain as he was, Miles Bletchley was still smart. Vera was better off being straightforward with him. "I have a proposition for you. You are aware that Flint has every intention of booting you from the team, right?"

"I was expecting that," he admitted grudgingly.

"I can get you back on the team if you apologize to him."

He scoffed loudly. "Apologize? Hardly. I don't think Flint's the type to listen to apologies and I'm not bowing my head in front of him when he used dark magic to curse off half my face in the middle of the bloody-"

"You're aware that your face only ended up that way because Flint didn't know how to do the spell correctly? It's really a pity he's so terrible at magic. I'll certainly be teaching him how to do it properly and next time you won't have a face left."

Bletchley tried to look unaffected but Vera could see that he was turning white. Perhaps it was a good thing that Flint had lost his temper and scared him. As much as he was trying to hide it, Bletchley was now terrified of Flint and she would use this to her advantage. Vera sat back coolly and watched as the Keeper cleared his throat. "What's the use?" he mumbled finally, giving in. "He wouldn't forgive me anyway, I said some awful things about you and I told him he was an ugly git and that you would eventually see sense and leave him for a better-looking man."

Vera held back a smile at the thought. "I'll make Marcus forgive you. I'll even make him take you back on the team. But for that, I need you to set aside your pride a bit and apologize. I can't do it if you keep being an arse."

Bletchley raised an eyebrow. "What if he tries to hex my face off again?"

"He won't."

Bletchley looked nervous, but he thought about it a little. He wasn't a complete idiot. Life in Slytherin would be difficult if he was booted off the team and had Flint against him. None of the boys on the Quidditch team would protect him from their captain. If Vera Selwyn was offering help, it was probably in Bletchley's best interests to take it. Vera could read his thoughts on his face and she smiled.

"You know I'm right, Bletchley. Things will get harder for you. Do you want to transfer to Durmstrang because Flint is making your life miserable? He'll do it, you know."

Bletchley took a deep breath and sighed. "Why are you trying to help me? What do you get out of it?"

Now they were getting somewhere. She reached into her bag and pulled out a sheaf of parchment. Glancing around the Hospital Wing to make sure that nobody was around, Vera lowered her voice and set the parchment beside Bletchley on the bed.

"Look at these carefully…"

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"Darling, where were you? You never came to lunch, I was looking everywhere for you," Flint said, sounding worried. Vera hadn't turned up at the Great Hall for lunch and he'd been extremely concerned until she entered the common room. He scooted over on the couch and made room for her, gesturing for her to sit beside him quickly.

"I went to see Bletchley in the Hospital Wing."

Flint stiffened and he placed a hand on her cheek to look at her face properly, worried that she might be hurt. "What? Why would you do that? That bloody git shouldn't be allowed anywhere near you after the things he said. You should have told me you were going, I would have-"

"Marcus, don't worry so much. I think you knocked some sense into him. He even apologized to me sincerely and he said that he's going to come and apologize to you too, once he's out of the Hospital Wing. You'll forgive him, won't you?" Vera turned and looked at Marcus, blinking at him innocently. No matter how angry Flint was, he always faltered when Vera pouted her lips a little and blinked at him. He cleared his throat and frowned.

"Forgive him?" he mumbled, though he sounded unsure. "Not likely."

Vera continued to pout her lips. "But darling… darling, I _really_ need you to forgive him for me."

"What for?" Flint complained. He didn't sound angry, so Vera could tell that he was softening up at her earnest request. It wasn't often that she asked him for something so sweetly. "I don't ever want to see his ugly mug again, why should I forgive him after everything he said?"

"I don't really want to forgive him either," Vera admitted with a sigh. "But, well… he might tell his parents about what happened and they'll know that you and I were involved. So if he gets kicked off the team and things like that, they're going to start blaming me," she explained sadly. Vera barely interacted with Bletchley's parents; they weren't even particularly close to her family. But Marcus didn't know that. "I really don't want to cause problems in my family, Marcus."

Flint's expression softened. "Darling…"

Vera blinked her eyes quickly, as though she was about to cry. She hunched her shoulders a little. "It would be so awful if Bletchley's mum started saying things about me, it would hurt my family so much. You know how important I am to my parents. His mum is a complete bitch, she would make things so ugly by saying hurtful things in public."

Vera could tell from the corner of her eyes that Flint was buying her act. He looked horrified as he wrapped an arm around her shoulder hurriedly, pulling her closer as she sniffed again and lifted a hand to wipe away her tears. She had always been able to make herself cry on demand; Vera considered it one of her best talents. Flint looked distressed. "Darling, don't cry. Please don't cry, this isn't worth crying over," he pleaded softly, leaning closer to try and looked at her face under her bowed head.

Vera sniffed. "It's not just that," she mumbled quietly.

"What is it, then? I'll take care of it, tell me what you want me to do," Flint insisted, lifting a hand to stroke her cheek. "Don't cry, I can't watch you upset."

"I'm worried that Bletchley and his parents will start saying things about you too, since you were the one that hexed him," she mumbled miserably. "I couldn't bear it if his mum started telling people how you knocked around her son, I wouldn't put it beneath her."

Flint shook his head hurriedly. "You don't need to worry about that, I don't care what Bletchley and his stupid mum say about-"

"But my parents will," Vera cut him off. She noticed Marcus stiffen immediately. He was a little slow, but even he couldn't miss what she was getting at. "My Dad might believe it. He's so protective of me, he might not like it if he thought my boyfriend was violent. And… and I really, really wanted you to meet my parents during Christmas this year but if Bletchley's mum says awful things about you and my parents don't like you then it'll all be ruined, and I don't think I could take that!" she insisted, covering her face with her hands and letting out a tiny sob for effect. She might have been pushing the acting a little, but Flint seemed to be completely captivated.

"You really wanted me to meet your parents during Christmas?" he asked suddenly.

Vera looked up at him and nodded. She had managed to squeeze out a few tears during her fake sobs and Flint could see them brimming in the corner of her eyes. "I did. Especially after what you said the other day in Hogsmeade about us being together for a long time, I thought it was so sweet," she mumbled, cuddling closer to him and pressing her face into his chest. He smelled of broom polish and mud, as always, and Vera inhaled his scent quickly. "But we can only be together for that long if our parents are all right with it."

Flint blinked. "O-oh," he mumbled. He looked down at Vera, who was curled up against his chest and he wrapped his arms around her gently. Even though she was crying, he could feel himself swell up at the thought that she had been thinking about introducing him to her parents. "Darling, that sounds… that sounds wonderful, I'm so glad you want to…"

Vera sniffed again, reaching up to grasp his shirt as she sniffled against his chest. "But- but if Bletchley's mum gets to them first then they won't like you and I wouldn't be able to handle that! Marcus, I _really_ , really want them to like you. I don't want them hearing bad rumors about you before you've even met."

"They will like me," Marcus told her firmly. He gently rubbed a hand up and down her back, trying to soothe her. "Don't worry about it. I'll accept Bletchley's apology. I won't give him any reason to blame me for the incident."

Vera looked up at him hopefully. "Really? Darling, you would do that for me?" she asked innocently.

Flint nodded, leaning forward to peck her slightly red cheeks. He was looking at her so lovingly and adoringly that Vera had a feeling Flint would even go and _snog_ Bletchley if she asked him to in that moment. Instead, she bit her lip. "And-and you'll take him back on the Quidditch team so I can prove to my parents that nothing's wrong and you didn't hurt him?" she added.

"I will," Flint promised. He sighed. "Higgs keeps saying that I won't be able to find a better Keeper than Bletchley so late in the season anyway, and I'm starting to think he's right. I'll take Bletchley back on the Quidditch team, darling, don't worry. I'll even treat him well so he keeps his fat mouth shut."

Vera sniffled again, more tears leaking down her face suddenly. Flint blinked at her in surprise. "Vera, darling, why are you crying now? I told you I'll take care of everything," he insisted, wrapping his arm around her again to comfort her.

"I know," Vera mumbled. "I'm just so grateful. I didn't know you loved me this much."

Marcus chuckled. "What are you saying, darling? I would do anything for you."

Vera nodded and pressed her face into his chest so that he wouldn't notice the smirk that was threatening to break out on her face. Pleased with herself, she wrapped her arms around Flint comfortably and let him rub her back while trying to comfort her.

 _Screw you Terence Higgs,_ Vera thought smugly as Marcus Flint whispered sweet nothings in her ear about how he loved her and he never wanted to see her cry again, it was breaking his heart. _I don't need ultimatums. I know how to make Flint choose me without realizing that he's doing it. That's how crazy he is about me._

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End file.
